"I Will Stand by You" is a song written by

Steven Lee Olsen Steven Lee Olsen (born November 25, 1985, in Newmarket, Ontario) is a Canadian country music artist and songwriter. He released his debut single "Now" in 2009 on RGK Records, taken from his 2009 debut album ''Introducing Steven Lee Olsen''. He fol ...

and

Robert Ellis Orrall Robert Ellis Orrall (born May 4, 1955) is an American singer, songwriter, and record producer. Signed to RCA Records in 1980, Orrall debuted that year with the album "Fixation". His first Top 40 single was "I Couldn't Say No", a duet with Carlene ...

. It was recorded by Canadian

country A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. It may be a sovereign state or make up one part of a larger state. For example, the country of Japan is an independent, sovereign state, while the ...

group

High Valley High Valley is a Canadian country music band from Blumenort, Alberta, a small community near the hamlet of La Crete. The group is composed of Brad Rempel (lead vocals) and his supporting band, Dave Myers (bass guitar), Sam Bergeson (vocals), Raym ...

and released as the lead single to the group's second self-titled album in early 2010. The song reached the top 20 of the ''Billboard''

Canada Country The ''Billboard'' charts tabulate the relative weekly popularity of songs and albums in the United States and elsewhere. The results are published in '' Billboard'' magazine. ''Billboard'' biz, the online extension of the ''Billboard'' charts, p ...

chart. The song was also recorded by American country duo

The Judds The Judds were an American country music duo composed of lead vocalist Wynonna Judd and her mother, Naomi Judd. The duo signed to RCA Nashville in 1983 and released six studio albums between then and 1991. The Judds were one of the most success ...

and released as a single in September 2010. The song was the only single released off of the 2011 compilation album, '' I Will Stand by You: The Essential Collection.''

Background, reception and release

The original version of "I Will Stand by You" was recorded in 2009 by High Valley in preparation for their debut studio release. The song was recorded in sessions held at three studios: Fool on the Hill, Six Degrees, and The Grip. Additional material was cut that later appeared on the duo's debut studio album. Released in February 2010, "I Will Stand by You" reached number 16 on the ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

chart later that year. It became the duo's first major hit as recording artists. "I Will Stand by You" was released on the duo's self-titled debut studio album, which also was issued in 2010. Three additional singles would be released following the song's success: "On the Combine," "

A Father's Love (The Only Way He Knew How) "A Father's Love (The Only Way He Knew How)" is a song written by Liz Hengber, Thom Shepherd and Steve Williams, originally released by Shepherd in 2007 on his album ''Texas Girls,'' and was re-recorded by American country music artist Bucky Coving ...

" and "Call Me Old Fashioned."

Chart performance

Personnel

All credits are adapted from

Discogs Discogs (short for discographies) is a database of information about audio recordings, including commercial releases, promotional releases, and bootleg or off-label releases. While the site was originally created with a goal of becoming the la ...

. High Valley * Brad Rempel – vocals * Bryan Rempel – vocals * Curtis Rempel – vocals Additional musicians *

Shannon Forrest Shannon Forrest (born August 22, 1973 in Easley, South Carolina) is an American drummer and percussionist known primarily for his session work. As a session drummer, he has contributed to the work of many well-known artists, and he is also a pr ...

– drums *

Jimmie Lee Sloas Jimmie Lee Sloas is an American session musician, producer, and songwriter, who plays bass guitar. History Jimmie Lee Sloas, born in Ashland, Kentucky, grew up in Fairborn, Ohio and Isonville, Kentucky. His father, Dave, was a member of the p ...

– bass guitar * Adam Shoenfeld – electric guitar *

Ilya Toshinsky Bering Strait was a Russian country music band, whose style was sometimes called "redgrass". In 2003, the band was nominated for a Grammy Award and appeared on the TV show ''60 Minutes''. The group disbanded in 2006. The lineup on their first alb ...

–

banjo The banjo is a stringed instrument with a thin membrane stretched over a frame or cavity to form a resonator. The membrane is typically circular, and usually made of plastic, or occasionally animal skin. Early forms of the instrument were fashi ...

, acoustic guitar,

mandolin A mandolin ( it, mandolino ; literally "small mandola") is a stringed musical instrument in the lute family and is generally plucked with a pick. It most commonly has four courses of doubled strings tuned in unison, thus giving a total of 8 ...

* Travis Toy – banjo, pedal steel guitar

The Judds version

Background

"I Will Stand by You" was recorded in 2010 in

Nashville, Tennessee Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the List of muni ...

. The session was produced by

Don Potter Donald Steele Potter (21 April 1902 – 7 June 2004) was an English sculptor, wood carver, potter and teacher. Don Potter was born in Newington, near Sittingbourne, Kent, the son of a school teacher, and attended a private school. He joined t ...

. Potter had previously assisted in the production of The Judds's studio releases in the 1980s. The song was recorded in promotion of the duo's 2011 compilation album release and national tour. The song was one of two new tracks featured on the compilation. The second new recording, "Back Home," was a duet with

Alison Krauss Alison Maria Krauss (born July 23, 1971) is an American bluegrass-country singer and musician. She entered the music industry at an early age, competing in local contests by the age of 8 and recording for the first time at 14. She signed with ...

. The song was recorded in a contemporary country style backed by an uptempo beat and a mix of various instruments. The song's instrumentation mostly featured

acoustic guitar An acoustic guitar is a musical instrument in the string family. When a string is plucked its vibration is transmitted from the bridge, resonating throughout the top of the guitar. It is also transmitted to the side and back of the instrument, ...

s, and kick drums.

Critical reception

"I Will Stand by You" was received with mostly negative reception upon its release. Tara Seetharam of ''Country Universe'' was disappointed by the lead vocals performed by

Wynonna Judd Wynonna Ellen Judd or simply Wynonna ( ; born Christina Claire Ciminella; May 30, 1964) is an American country music singer. She is one of the most widely recognized and awarded female country singers. In all, she has had 19 No. 1 singles, incl ...

. "Her performance misses the mark on all accounts: she blasts her notes with so much splashy aggression that they can barely find their pitch, and her phrasing is painfully affected," she commented. In addition, Seetharam also criticized harmony vocals performed by

Naomi Judd Naomi Judd (born Diana Ellen Judd; January 11, 1946 – April 30, 2022) was an American singer and actress. In 1980, she and her daughter Wynonna (born Christina Claire) formed the duo known as The Judds, which became a very successful country ...

, calling them "off-key." While negatively reviewing the song's vocal performance, Seetharam called the production "kinda cool," comparing it to that of

Mary Chapin Carpenter Mary may refer to: People * Mary (name), a feminine given name (includes a list of people with the name) Religious contexts * New Testament people named Mary, overview article linking to many of those below * Mary, mother of Jesus, also calle ...

and

Keith Urban Keith Lionel Urban (born 26 October 1967) is an Australian-American musician, singer, guitarist and songwriter known for his work in country music. Recognized with four Grammy Awards, Urban also received fifteen Academy of Country Music Award ...

. In reviewing the duo's 2011 compilation album,

Allmusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

's Thom Jurek also criticized "I Will Stand by You." Jurek disliked the song's production style and compared it to that of "70's area-rock." He also believed that the production drowned harmony vocals performed by the duo.

Release and promotion

"I Will Stand by You" was released in September 2010 via

Curb Records Curb Records (also known as Asylum-Curb and formerly known as MCG Curb) is an American record label started by Mike Curb, originally as Sidewalk Records in 1963. From 1969 to 1973, Curb merged with MGM Records where Curb served as President of ...

. The song marked the duo's first single release in ten years. The Judds promoted the single beginning with making an appearance on ''

The Oprah Winfrey Show ''The Oprah Winfrey Show'', often referred to as ''The Oprah Show'' or simply ''Oprah'', is an American daytime broadcast syndication, syndicated talk show that aired nationally for 25 seasons from September 8, 1986, to May 25, 2011, in Chicag ...

'' in September 2010. The duo performed the song at the end of the episode. One month later, the duo appeared on the

Grand Ole Opry The ''Grand Ole Opry'' is a weekly American country music stage concert in Nashville, Tennessee, founded on November 28, 1925, by George D. Hay as a one-hour radio "barn dance" on WSM. Currently owned and operated by Opry Entertainment (a divis ...

to promote the single, helping to raise awareness for cancer. They later appeared on ''

Good Morning America ''Good Morning America'' (often abbreviated as ''GMA'') is an American morning television program that is broadcast on ABC. It debuted on November 3, 1975, and first expanded to weekends with the debut of a Sunday edition on January 3, 1993. Th ...

'' and ''

The Today Show ''Today'' (also called ''The Today Show'' or informally, ''NBC News Today'') is an American news and talk morning television show that airs weekdays from 7:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. on NBC. The program debuted on January 14, 1952. It was ...

'' to promote the single. The single also helped promote the duo's first tour in ten years entitled ''The Judds: The Last Encore.'' The tour ran for one month in the fall of 2010. "I Will Stand by You" was later released on the duo's compilation album, '' I Will Stand by You: The Essential Collection.'' The album was officially released on April 5, 2011 via Curb Record.

Track listing

;CD single *"I Will Stand by You" – 3:26 *"I Will Stand by You (Callout Hook)" – 0:10

Personnel

All credits are adapted from Discogs. The Judds *

– vocals *

– vocals Additional musicians * Tim Akers –

keyboards Keyboard may refer to: Text input * Keyboard, part of a typewriter * Computer keyboard ** Keyboard layout, the software control of computer keyboards and their mapping ** Keyboard technology, computer keyboard hardware and firmware Music * Musi ...

organ Organ may refer to: Biology * Organ (biology), a part of an organism Musical instruments * Organ (music), a family of keyboard musical instruments characterized by sustained tone ** Electronic organ, an electronic keyboard instrument ** Hammond ...

Eddie Bayers Eddie Bayers (born January 28, 1949) is an American session drummer who has played on 300 gold and platinum albums. He received the Academy of Country Music 'Drummer of the Year Award' for fourteen years, has three times won the Nashville Music ...

–

drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair o ...

* Bob Britt –

electric guitar An electric guitar is a guitar that requires external amplification in order to be heard at typical performance volumes, unlike a standard acoustic guitar (however combinations of the two - a semi-acoustic guitar and an electric acoustic gui ...

* Spencer Campbell –

bass guitar The bass guitar, electric bass or simply bass (), is the lowest-pitched member of the string family. It is a plucked string instrument similar in appearance and construction to an electric or an acoustic guitar, but with a longer neck and ...

* Maurice Carter – background vocals * Gordon Mote –

piano The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a keyboa ...

synthesizer A synthesizer (also spelled synthesiser) is an electronic musical instrument that generates audio signals. Synthesizers typically create sounds by generating waveforms through methods including subtractive synthesis, additive synthesis and ...

–

* Jaimee Paul Shires – background vocals *

Nir Z NIR or Nir may refer to: Science and technology * Near-infrared, a region within the infrared part of the electromagnetic radiation spectrum * Near-infrared spectroscopy, a spectroscopic method that uses the near-infrared region (from 780 nm to 25 ...

. – drums,

percussion A percussion instrument is a musical instrument that is sounded by being struck or scraped by a beater including attached or enclosed beaters or rattles struck, scraped or rubbed by hand or struck against another similar instrument. Exc ...

References

{{authority control 2010 songs 2010 singles Curb Records singles High Valley songs The Judds songs Open Road Recordings singles Songs written by Steven Lee Olsen Songs written by Robert Ellis Orrall